How Children Understand War and Peace

AMIRAM RAVIV is associate professor of clinical child psychology at Tel Aviv University. He is also a school and children's clinical psychologist. LOUIS OPPENHEIMER Louis Oppenheimer DANIEL BAR-TAL is a professor of social psychology, Tel Aviv University, and is president of the International Society of Political Psychology, 1999-2000.

"This landmark book will help open the way to advances in researchon the development of children's conceptions of peace and on thepractice of peace education." (Milton Schwebel, editor, Peace andConflict: Journal of Peace Psychology) "I welcome this important new book. The editors and contributorshave given us a new and valuable account of how young peopleunderstand the essential issues of war and peace. Not only is thisa large step forward in the study of child and adolescent socialcognition, but, in addition, the knowledge base in this booksuggests ways to educate the younger generation toward morepeaceful resolutions of dangerous social conflicts." (WilliamDamon, professor and director, Stanford Center onAdolescence) "The first comprehensive overview of current research on children'sunderstanding of peace, conflict, and war, this book shows therichness of children's understanding in its sociocultural context.It challenges us to think deeply about the connections betweenhuman development, war, and peace and about how to educate for aculture of peace." (Michael G. Wessells, professor of psychology,Randolph-Macon College) "This comprehensive book discusses research on how peace, conflict,and war are interpreted by youngsters from different cultures andhow such knowledge can help educators contribute to building peace.Anyone interested in peace and conflict, child development, andeducation will find many useful insights and a wealth of diverseapproaches for working with children in this important new book."(?ke Bjerstedt, professor emeritus of education, Lund University,Sweden)

• Preface. Introduction: Understanding Peace, Conflict, and War LouisOppenheimer, University of Amsterdam;Daniel Bar-Tal, Tel Aviv University;Amiram Raviv, Tel Aviv University. DEVELOPMENTAL PERSPECTIVES. Children, War, and Peace: A Review of Fifty Years of Research fromthe Perspective of a Balanced Concept of Peace EducationLennartVriens, Utrecht University. I Know What You Are Thinking: The Role-Taking Ability andUnderstanding of Peace and WarIlse Hakvoort and Louis Oppenheimer,University of Amsterdam. The Peace Personality Robert C. Ziller, Dahlie S. Moriarty, andStephen T. Phillips, University of Florida. Toward a Positive Conception of Peace Orlando Lourenco, Universityof Lisbon. SOCIALIZATION AND EXPERIENCE. Cultural Socialization and Conceptions of War and Peace: ACross-National Comparison Katherine Covell, University College ofCape Breton. Concept Formation of War and Peace: A Meeting Point Between ChildDevelopment and a Politically Violent Society Raija-Leena Punamtrade, University of Helsinki. Children, Peace, and War in Northern Ireland Frances McLernon andEd Cairns, University of Ulster. Beliefs About War, Conflict, and Peace in Israel as a Function ofDevelopmental, Cultural, and Situational Factors Amiram Raviv, TelAviv University;Daniel Bar-Tal, Tel Aviv University;Leah Koren-Silvershatz, Israeli Ministry of Health;Alona Raviv, Tel Aviv University. Peer Relationships and Children's Understanding of Peace and War: ASociocultural Perspective Solveig trade Goteborg University. Correlates, Consequences, and Cross-Cultural Issues Michael R. VanSlyck, Research Institute for Dispute Resolution;Marilyn Stern, State University of New York, Albany;Salman Elbedour, Ben Gurion University at Negev. LEARNING IN SCHOOLS. Teaching Conflict and Conflict Resolution in School:(Extra-)Curricular Considerations Kathy Bickmore, University ofToronto. Teaching an Understanding of War and Peace Through StructuredAcademic Controversies Patricia G. Avery, David W. Johnson, RogerT. Johnson, and James M. Mitchell, University of Minnesota. Learning Conflict Management Through Peer Mediation Robin Hall,Charles Sturt University. Types of Peace Education Ian M. Harris, University of Wisconsin atMilwaukee. About the Editors. About the Contributors. Index.